Death toll from Wednesday’s explosions rises to 20, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry
Walkie-talkie maker says exploded devices appear to have been knockoffs
This video grab, shows a walkie-talkie that was exploded inside a house, in Baalbek, east Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo)
A sales executive at the U.S. subsidiary of Japanese walkie-talkie maker Icom told The Associated Press that the exploded radio devices in Lebanon appear to be a knockoff product and not made by Icom.
“I can guarantee you they were not our products,” said Ray Novak, a senior sales manager for Icom America’s amateur radio division, in an interview Wednesday at a trade show in Providence, Rhode Island.
Novak said Icom introduced the V82 two-way radio model more than two decades ago and it has long since been discontinued. It was favored by amateur radio operators and for use in social or emergency communications, including by people tracking tornadoes or hurricanes, he said.
Novak said he spent all day fielding calls and trying to dispel misinformation about Icom’s discontinued device. He showed a reporter on his cellphone how easy it is to find counterfeit versions of the product sold online.
US military officials reexamining how forces are positioned in Mideast
Lt. Gen. Derek France, the head of U.S. air power in the Middle East, had been scheduled to talk to reporters at a conference in Maryland on Wednesday but canceled to more closely monitor the situation after the pager attack, a military official said on the condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing situation.
The official said the attack has prompted the Air Force to reexamine how U.S. forces are positioned in the region in case of retaliation.
It comes after the Navy pulled one of its aircraft carriers out of the region last week following the Pentagon’s decision to keep two carriers in the Middle East for a short time recently.
The Biden administration beefed up the U.S. military presence there to help defend Israel from possible attacks by Iran and its proxies and to safeguard U.S. troops. The U.S. has tens of thousands of service members, additional ships and aircraft squadrons based throughout the Middle East to try to keep the conflict from spreading into a wider regional war.
IN PHOTOS: Walkie-talkies and other devices exploded at a funeral for Hezbollah leaders
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CORRECTS DAY TO TUESDAY WHEN KILLED Hezbollah fighters carry the coffins of fallen four comrades who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Hezbollah fighters salute as they stand next to the coffins of four victims who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Mourners carry the coffins of victims who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Hezbollah fighters carry one of the coffins of four fallen comrades who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Hezbollah fighters carry the coffins of four fallen comrades during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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An Israeli reconnaissance drone flies over the funeral procession of four Hezbollah fighters who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Lebanese security officers stand next of a partly damaged car after what is believed to be the result of a walkie-talkie exploding inside it, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
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This video grab, shows a walkie-talkie that was exploded inside a house, in Baalbek, east Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo)
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CORRECTS DAY TO TUESDAY WHEN KILLED Hezbollah fighters carry the coffins of fallen four comrades who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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CORRECTS DAY TO TUESDAY WHEN KILLED Hezbollah fighters carry the coffins of fallen four comrades who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Hezbollah fighters salute as they stand next to the coffins of four victims who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Hezbollah fighters salute as they stand next to the coffins of four victims who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Mourners carry the coffins of victims who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Mourners carry the coffins of victims who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Hezbollah fighters carry one of the coffins of four fallen comrades who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Hezbollah fighters carry one of the coffins of four fallen comrades who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Hezbollah fighters carry the coffins of four fallen comrades during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Hezbollah fighters carry the coffins of four fallen comrades during their funeral procession in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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An Israeli reconnaissance drone flies over the funeral procession of four Hezbollah fighters who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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An Israeli reconnaissance drone flies over the funeral procession of four Hezbollah fighters who were killed Tuesday after their handheld pagers exploded in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Lebanese security officers stand next of a partly damaged car after what is believed to be the result of a walkie-talkie exploding inside it, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
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Lebanese security officers stand next of a partly damaged car after what is believed to be the result of a walkie-talkie exploding inside it, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
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This video grab, shows a walkie-talkie that was exploded inside a house, in Baalbek, east Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo)
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This video grab, shows a walkie-talkie that was exploded inside a house, in Baalbek, east Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo)
Lebanon’s Health Ministry says 14 people killed and over 450 wounded in Wednesday’s explosions
Netanyahu releases a short video statement
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has released a short video statement after the latest round of explosions in Lebanon.
“I have already said we will return the residents of the north safely to their homes,” he said. “And that is exactly what we will do.”
UN chief concerned about ‘dramatic escalation’ in Lebanon
FILE – United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a news conference at the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit, Dec. 11, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili, File)
Asked about Tuesday’s pager explosions, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called it especially serious not only because of the large number of victims “but because of the indications that exist that this was triggered — I would say, in advance of the normal way to trigger these things — because there was a risk of this being discovered.”
“Obviously the logic of making all these devices explode is to do it as a preemptive strike before a major military operation,” the U.N. chief said. “So as important as the event in itself, is the indication that this event confirms that there is a serious risk of a dramatic escalation in Lebanon.”
“Everything must be done to avoid that escalation,” Guterres said.
Guterres made the comments prior to finding out about Wednesday’s explosions involving walkie-talkies.
Israel heightens threats to strike Hezbollah
Israel’s army chief says Israel has drawn up plans for additional action against Hezbollah and is ready to strike.
“We have many capabilities that we have not yet activated,” Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said after approving new operational plans at Israel’s Northern Command on Wednesday.
“Every time we work at a certain stage, the next two stages are ready to go forward strongly,” he says. “At each stage, the price for Hezbollah needs to be high.”
Israeli defense minister declares start of “new phase” of war
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant pauses while making a brief statement to the media, Monday, Oct. 16, 2023, in Tel Aviv. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool, File)
Israel’s defense minister has declared the start of a “new phase” of the war as Israel turns its focus toward the northern front against Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
Speaking to Israeli troops on Wednesday, Yoav Gallant made no mention of the mysterious explosions of electronic devices in Lebanon in recent days. But he praised the work of Israel’s army and security agencies, saying “the results are very impressive.”
He said that after months of war against Hamas militants in Gaza, “the center of gravity is shifting to the north by diverting resources and forces.”
“We are at the start of a new phase in the war — it requires courage, determination and perseverance,” he said.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry says at least 9 people were killed and 300 were injured by the second wave of device explosions
Over 100 wounded in Wednesday’s explosions, official says
Lebanon’s health ministry says one person was killed and over 100 were wounded by exploding electronic devices in the country on Wednesday.
